2103 CENTENNIAL HALL 608.785.8852
www.uwlax.edu/it-makes-cents Office hours Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
IT MAKE$ CENTS!
CREDIT BASICS
Your money. Your future.
608.785.8852
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-LA CROSSE
TOO MUCH DEBT?• Making minimum payments• Reaching your credit limit or coming close to it• Unaware of the amounts owed• Using cash advance to pay bills• Denied credit or credit purchase• Calls from collection agencies• Lying about spending• Most or all income going towards debt
Paying down your debt• Pay lowest balance or highest interest rate accounts
first• Pay as large a payment as you can, making sure it is
more than the minimum due• Once a debt is paid off, continue paying off other
debts• Once all debts are paid off, send payments to
savings
CREDIT SCOREThings that impact your credit score:n PAYMENT HISTORY - Making payments on time
n AMOUNTS OWED - Amount of credit limit being used
n NEW CREDIT INQUIRES - When people look up your credit history
n LENGTH OF CREDIT HISTORY - How long you’ve had the line of credit
n TYPES OF CREDIT USED - Installment (Auto Loan) - Revolving Credit (Credit Card) - Mortgage (Home Loan)
BUILDING CREDIT • Get a secured line of credit
• Pay your bills on time
• Limit the number of lines of credit
• Keep balances low
• Be selective about what your apply for
• Have a mix of credit (credit cards, auto loans, mortgage, etc.)
Who cares about your credit scores?
• Financial Institutions distribute interest rates based on credit score
• Employers
• Landlords
• Utilities - Cell phones, electicity, etc.
• Insurance companies
730+ 700-729 670-699 585-669 584 or belowexcellent credit good/above average good credit fair credit poor credit
What is your credit score?
www.uwlax.edu/it-makes-cents
CREDIT REPORT
Information found on your credit report:• Name
• Social security #
• Birth date
• Address
• Creditors and payment history (good and bad)
• Inquiries you initiated
• Bankruptcies
• Judgments
• Liens
• Lawsuits
• Employment information
Not on your Credit Report:• Income and checking account info
• Medical history
• Race, and gender
• Criminal records
• Driving records
You can view your credit report from each of the following report companies:
TransUnionEquifax
Experianfor free once each year at
annualcreditreport.com